Aftermath II
by NephilimEQ
Summary: Part 2 of the Aftermath Series. Buffy is hurt, and something needs to be done. PLEASE READ & REVIEW!
1. Prologue

**Aftermath II**

_Summary_: Buffy and Giles come together after the final battle, and soon discover why they didn't see each other before.

_Rating_: M - Some highly descriptive love scenes and some language. You've been warned!

_Spoilers_: Villians

_Disclaimer_: I do not own any of these characters, though at times I wish...please, Joss, I beg you! Rhea is one of my own creations however. Long may she live!

_Author_: E. Quackenbush aka NephilimEQ (previously known as edq-ocd18)

_Author's Notes_: Truly enjoyable to continue writing...thank you, my reviewers!

* * *

**aftermath (n.) - **the consequences of an event or series of events

* * *

Buffy was barely aware of the rest of the girls on the bus as it moved down the highway, carrying them to an unknown destination. Robin Wood drove, which meant that Giles was right beside her.

After a few moments, she felt his hand reach out towards hers, and she willingly took the offer.

He softly gave a slight reassuring squeeze and she gladly accepted it. He was the comfort that she was going to need in the unsure days ahead. She glanced to the side, and they caught each others' eyes. He gave her a soft smile, and she smiled back. And that was when she realized where they needed to go.

She leaned forward in her seat. "Robin...I know where we're going."

* * *

As they unloaded, Buffy saw Angel watching from inside of the hotel. It wasn't the best of circumstances, but the Hyperion had what they needed for the amount of people that she had.

She reached up for a bag of weapons and winced slightly as a pain lanced her side. She glanced down and saw blood soaking through her shirt.

Immediately Giles was at her side, a hand outstretched towards her shoulders, instinctively moving to stable her. He motioned for a couple of the other girls to take the bag, and Buffy let him look at her side.

As he examined her side, his jaw tightened and his eyes became steeled. She looked down at him, wondering what was making him react in that way. Suddenly, before she even realized what was happening, he had swung her up into his arms and was walking them through the entrance of the Hyperion.

A slight giggle escaped her. "Carrying me over the threshold, Sir Giles?"

His jaw was still tensed as he answered her. "Not exactly...Buffy, you have a severe injury, and even with your healing, I don't know how you've lasted this long."

The apprehension in his voice was palpable, and she felt a twinge of fear pass through her.

Angel approached them as they made their way over to the elevator, and from her position in Giles' arms, she could feel his whole body become as taut as a wire.

"Are you okay?" The worry in Angel's voice was obvious, but Giles shifted Buffy in his arms so that she had to cling tighter to him, and she soon realized that that was his intention. Angel watched as she held tighter to her Watcher and a brief shadow flickered across his face, but it soon dissipated.

Giles gave the vampire a cold look, and tried to keep his voice even as he spoke. "She needs immediate medical attention. What floors are open for us?"

It took a moment for Angel to answer, but then he did so quickly. "Uh, the fifth floor all the way up to the last one, the tenth, is free."

Giles nodded, and then tried to push the button, but was unable to do so as Buffy was in his arms. Angel reached forward and quickly did it for him. As the elevator doors opened, Giles realized that because Buffy was in his arms, Angel was going to have to come with them, as he would be unable to push any buttons.

Angel realized this as well, and hesitatingly followed them onto the elevator. "Which floor?"

Giles glanced down at his Slayer in his arms, and then brought his gaze back up Angel's. "The tenth."

Angel's hand hesitated over the panel of buttons. He knew that this was Giles' way of deliberately cutting him off, keeping him away from Buffy. The top floor got the most sun...and Giles knew that.

He pushed the button.

Within moments, they arrived at the top floor. Giles stepped out of the elevator, and without a glance back at the shadow of the man who still stood in it, quickly moved down the hall towards a room. He soon heard the ding of the elevator doors closing, and he let out a sigh of relief.

Buffy had fallen asleep on the elevator from extreme exhaustion. Apparently, it had finally caught up with her.

Giles moved down to a room at the far end of the hall. Room 1025. He looked at the rudimentary lock, and then at the woman in his arms. He gently placed her down on the floor and then kicked the door in.

He swung her back up into his arms and carried her into the room, placing her on one of the beds. As he did so, he realized that he would need his bag.

He didn't want to leave her here all alone, but it seemed that he had no choice. He leaned over and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead. It was slightly warm.

That was not a good sign. If she was warm, then that meant a possible fever, a fever meant infection, and if he couldn't treat the infection then that would mean some severe consequences. He glanced back once from the doorway, and then rushed down the hallway towards the elevator, determined to be away from her for as little as possible.

He soon disembarked on the first floor and looked around frantically for either Xander or Willow.

Before he could find them, Dawn was next to him, holding something in her hand. "Giles...you left your bag down here. I thought you might need-" She was cut off as she was suddenly enveloped in a tight one-armed hug from her sister's Watcher.

He quickly let her go, and made his way back to the elevator, the bag in his hand.

Dawn knew something was wrong, so she quickly gestured to Xander and Willow to come over. They quickly came over, and, before Giles could get away, they managed to shove themselves onto the elevator with him.

Giles barely noticed them, so intent he was on getting back up to Buffy. Dawn soon made her presence known to him, however, by suddenly bombarding him with questions. "What's wrong? Where's Buffy? Giles, what's going on?" Xander and Willow, on the other hand, remained silent, recognizing that he was in Watcher mode, and that he would tell them everything when he felt that they needed to know.

They left the elevator on the tenth floor, and followed after him down to one of the rooms.

They trailed in after him, and Dawn had to stifle her soft cry of horror. Buffy lay on the bed, asleep, but her shirt was so covered with blood, and she was so still, that it was like seeing her dead all over again.

Giles rushed to her side, opening his bag as he went. Xander sat himself on the other bed in the room, watching in absolute silence, his mind flashing back to when she'd been shot. He'd been the only one to ever see her in such a state.

Willow watched silently, recognizing ingredients as he pulled them out. She saw elder flower, yarrow flower, peppermint leaves, and hyssop leaves.

All of those ingredients combined into a tea helped reduce fever...however, there were some other ingredients that worried her. They worried her because she knew that they were for reversing the effects of curses. She saw him throw a few of them together into a pestle that he'd pulled from his bag and begin to make a paste.

Dawn sat on the bed next to Xander, wrapping both of her hands around his right arm, needing reassurance.

Xander looked down at her, and then back at his best friend on the other bed, still not quite processing what was happening.

Giles took out his surgical knife that he kept in his bag and quickly sterilized it. He glanced over at Dawn. "Dawn...you might not...uhm...want to see this."

At those words, she turned her eyes away and pressed her face into Xander's shoulder, her right hand gripping his arm tightly.

Giles reached down and ripped off the bottom portion of her shirt, needing to see the wound in its' entirety. Oh dear lord...it was deep. Too deep. But he had no choice. He slid on the surgical gloves that he'd pulled out of one of the side pockets on the inside of the bag, and then placed a bracing hand on one side of the wound.

After using a needle to place a local anesthetic, he was ready.

He brought his other hand to her side and began to slowly cut through the partially healed tissue. Blood stained the gloves almost immediately, but he had steeled himself for the sight.

With each slice, he felt that he was closer to the object that was still inside of her.

Willow watched, taking in every detail, amazed at Giles' strength as he cut open his Slayer to save her life. In the past, the sight of blood bothered her, but now she had almost become numb to it...however, the sight of her best friend's blood seemed to be affecting her more than she realized.

She felt dizzy, but she shook it off. Now was not the time to get squeamish.

It was a part of battle. That's just how things were.

He finally felt it. With his left hand, he dug slightly deeper into the wound, gently feeling around for the hidden shard...there it was! He felt a hard edge, so he lightly pulled, but it didn't budge. It was firmly lodged inside. He glanced up at Willow and then over to Xander, a bead of sweat running into his eye from his brow.

He'd taken off his glasses for the surgery so that he could see properly...and he now could see that he needed Xander's help. He merely looked at the young man, and he knew.

He passed Dawn over to Willow, and went over to help Giles.

Without any words being spoken, Xander and Giles worked together perfectly. Xander had pulled on an extra pair of latex gloves, and he now had a hand inside of his friend.

Xander glanced up at Giles as he got a firm grip on the object that was slowly killing his friend. They both knew that the instant that he pulled it out, the wound would start bleeding profusely, and Giles would need to be there in an instant, or else Buffy might bleed out. Her Slayer powers were drained, and they weren't going to save her now.

Giles nodded, and Xander pulled it out. Giles immediately went into action, placing a thick cloth gauze pad on the wound, wrapping it with surgical tape as tightly as he dared.

Xander placed the bloodied shard on the dresser that was against the wall, leaving it to Giles to figure out what it was.

Giles reached for the paste that he'd made earlier and placed it just under the gauze, into the wound. Hopefully, it would counteract whatever curse had been on the object embedded in her.

He looked over at Willow, and motioned for her to make the tea. Willow nodded, not able to find any words to speak, and placed Dawn back on the edge of the bed. Dawn watched in silence as everyone found a small task to get done. Willow was heating water and adding ingredients, Xander was using alcohol on the surgical knife that Giles had used, and Giles was gathering Buffy's bloodied clothes.

At that point, he turned towards Dawn. "Dawn...would you like to stay with her tonight?"

Dawn finally found words. "Yeah...if that's okay, I mean." Giles gave her a soft smile and placed a hand on her shoulder. "Of course it is."

With those words, he turned back to his Slayer and, after asking Xander to turn his back, stripped the rest of her shirt off of her and put her in one of his softer oxford shirts.

He then reached underneath and deftly undid the back clasp of her bra and slid it off from under the shirt.

Willow and Dawn both saw this, but said nothing, thinking that he must have helped Buffy out like this sometimes after really bad patrols where she had gotten injured.

Giles then gathered everything that was bloodied, including the jeans that she'd been wearing which he'd slipped off of her as well, and then he turned towards Dawn. "Dawn, can you put her under the covers?" She nodded, and he gave her a nod of appreciation back, and then left the room, bloodied clothes in hand.

He entered the elevator, hit the button for the first floor, and then slowly unclenched his jaw as he descended.

There were so many ways in which everything could have gone wrong, and they still weren't out of the woods yet, but they were at least closer than they were.

The doors dinged open as he arrived, and he walked through them, not noticing the stares that he got as he walked through the lobby with the clothes in hand.

Within seconds, Angel was right there in front of him. "Where is she?" He was practically snarling, and then he saw the bloodied clothes, smelled the blood, saw parts of Giles' shirt stained with it, and he lost it. With no provocation, he vamped out and lunged at Giles, who had no way of protecting himself.

Suddenly he found himself shoved against the wall next to the elevator, the button being pressed painfully into his back.

All the Slayers that were milling about in the lobby froze, not knowing what to do as they knew Angel only to be one of the good guys. Faith had left the lobby earlier, which meant that the only person of authority that they truly recognized was being thrown against the wall by a vampire that none of them were willing to face.

Giles tried not to show fear, but his mind kept on flashing back to instant. _"You know, the last time I tortured someone they didn't even have chainsaws..."_

Angel snarled, and with his grip still on the lapels on Giles' jacket he shoved him once more, now gripping his throat with one hand, and Giles' head hit against the wall with a thud. "What did you do to her?" It came out as a low growl, and Giles could do nothing.

Angel felt a tap on his shoulder, and without letting up on his hold on the Watcher, he turned his head around, growling.

Next thing he knew, he was on the ground, with a stake sticking out of his left shoulder. Whoever had done it, had missed the heart.

He moved to get up, but before he could even see who did it, a swift kick to the head soon knocked him out. Giles was still at the wall, leaning against it for support now, rubbing his bruised throat. He looked up to see one of the Slayers, a girl whose name he couldn't remember, standing over Angel and motioning for a couple of the other girls to take him to the back office and then close all the blinds.

She looked over his way, and then walked towards him. "Are you okay, Mr. Giles?"

He gave her a brief nod, still using one hand to massage his neck. Yes, there would definitely be a bruise.

He flashed her a brief smile. "Yes, thank you. It seems I am in your debt." She shook her head, disagreeing with him.

"No, you're not." He looked at her in confusion, and she just gave him an enigmatic look, one that left him even more befuddled than before. She explained. "You were the one that found me. I was living in China in one of the monastic temples, and you found me after the Bringers killed my previous Watcher."

He looked at her, trying to remember her name. It suddenly came to him. He remembered seeing the temple...and all of the other bodies inside of it. "You're Rhea."

She gave a sheepish grin. "Guilty as charged." With that, she began to walk away, but he joined her, intent on pointing out an error. "You do realize you missed the heart, and you're lucky that you did. If you'd killed him-"

Rhea cut him off. "I missed the heart on purpose, Mr. Giles. I know who he is...however, what he did to you was inexcusable. I'm more experienced than some of the other Slayers here, but there's no way I could match him in an actual fight."

That was when Giles remembered who her watcher was. Gan Rui Pin. He had been a master of Kung Fu, and had been an excellent teacher.

He stood as straight as he could, and gave a proper bow. She returned it, and then helped him pick up the bloodied clothes that he'd dropped on the floor. They worked silently, while all the other Slayers tried to pretend that nothing had happened. It was easier to do that than to deal with the fact that one of their own had just attacked the one man that they all recognized as having as much authority as Buffy.

Rhea helped him take the clothes to the incinerator in the back, and then followed him out of the room.

As they arrived back at the elevator, an idea came to Giles' mind. He turned towards her as they waited for the elevator. "Rhea...Buffy will be unable to patrol for quite a while, and since Angel just...well...would you...?"

She nodded her head, understanding what he meant. "I would be honored, Sensei."

He looked at her in surprise, not expecting her to give him such a title. She merely smiled and walked towards the front, but not before Giles got a look at her.

She moved as a student of the ancient art of Kung Fu would. There was grace, but deliberation with every step. She wasn't stunningly beautiful, but she was fairly pretty, with dark brown hair that fell just beyond her shoulders, and her personality more than made up for it. He smiled to himself as he got onto the elevator.

She was going to be an excellent Slayer.

He smiled again as he got off on the tenth floor. He had found Buffy's successor.

* * *

**aftermath (n.) - **the consequences of an event or series of events

* * *

**Not quite the end...**


	2. When It Starts

**aftermath (n.) - **the consequences of an event or series of events

* * *

**When It Starts**

* * *

It had been three days, and Buffy had been in and out of consciousness, which was to be expected.

Giles sat in a chair by her bedside, while Dawn slept in the other bed. She had insisted on staying up for a long as possible, but he had forced her to go to sleep.

During the past few nights, Rhea had gone out and patrolled. She had taken a couple of other Slayers with her the first night, but found that they were more a hindrance than a help, so she had been patrolling on her own the past couple nights. She'd reported to him each night, and he'd had to stitch up her neck one of those nights.

She'd nearly been decapitated by Fyarl demon with an axe. He realized that she needed more training. She was excellent at Kung Fu, but knew next to nothing about boxing or street fighting, which made her frightfully limited.

Within his mind, he'd been creating a training program. He'd already run it by Wesley, who'd come up a couple times to see how Buffy was doing.

Wesley had said nothing about the incident between Angel and Giles, and from the information that Giles inferred, it seemed that Cordelia was handling him for the moment. However, he was eager to start the training, as was Giles.

Both of them were Watchers at heart...and both of them loved to have a good training session when being idle for too long. Giles almost found it amusing how Wesley had lit up at his suggestion, as if he had given him the best present he ever could have asked for, and then some.

He was sitting at Buffy's bedside when Xander walked in.

"Hey...how's she doing?"

Giles gave his usual response. "As well as can be expected." The conversation went silent, and there was a palpable discomfort in the air, something that was almost commonplace whenever anyone asked him about Buffy. And Xander was sick and tired of it. He was going to get Giles out of this room and doing something.

"So...Wesley's starting the training today." He glanced down at his watch. "Now, as a matter of fact. You wanna go watch?"

Giles looked up at him, wondering what Xander's true motive was, but before he could even infer it, Xander beat him to the punch.

"Look, I'm trying to get you out of this room and away from Sulk City, because when you're like this..._every_one suffers from a _severe_ lack of control and have a frighteningly powerful urge to hit you. We don't do it, but we want to. Get the picture?"

Giles chuckled. Leave it to Xander to not beat around the bush.

He nodded, and decided to do as the boy asked and he headed down to the sixth floor, where they had finally set up a training room. The fifth floor was busy being worked on for another purpose. At the thought of the fifth floor, Giles decided to check on how it was coming along...he was the one who'd started the project in the first place.

The hall was dark as he got off on the floor, so he pulled a flashlight from his back-pocket. He had been coming there from time to time to check on things, so he kept it on him.

After a quick glance at everything, he was assured that things were going well.

He left the floor, and headed up to the sixth to see how Rhea was doing. He wondered how Wesley was going to start.

* * *

"Ugh!"

Rhea was knocked to her back once more, and with a grimace she pulled herself back up.

Wesley waited, in full padding, looking somewhat squished, a quarterstaff in his hands.

"Come on, Rhea...you can do better than this! You should have blocked my last blow easily! Focus! Please!"

That was it. He'd been bugging her for the last fifteen minutes...there was no way she was holding back now. With a yell, she attacked him with full force, the quarterstaff in her hands flying to the side. She didn't need a piece of wood to make him cry uncle, and that's what she planned on having him do.

"You...bastard!" With each word, she landed a hit on him, but he managed to swing out with the quarterstaff and trip her up...just like before. And now she was on her back on the floor again.

That was it. She was sick and tired of training with him! He'd taught her nothing useful.

"That's it! I quit! Find someone else to be Buffy's replacement, cause either I get a new person to train me, or you get someone else to be the Slayer that patrols! I miss having my nights to myself anyway...so goodbye!"

With that, she reached over for her towel and ran it across her face and chest, wiping the sweat off.

She started to reach for her water, but a hand reached for it and took it before she could get to it. That was it; she didn't care who had just taken it, they were getting their ass kicked. Quickly, before a normal person could react, she kicked out in a side-kick, but she suddenly found her foot in a strong grip, and she fell to the floor, onto her back, once more.

"That was strong...but not strong enough." She looked up to find Mr. Giles standing over her, and she turned a violent shade of red.

Oh god...she'd just attacked the highest ranking person in the entire building.

He calmly walked away, picking up the water that he'd dropped when he'd stopped her kick. Rhea made her way to her feet, keeping her eyes low in embarrassment.

She saw the water. "Sir...um, could I have that back?"

He gave her a look, and then glanced down to the bottle in his hand, as though surprised she was asking for it. "You mean this?"

She nodded.

He then placed it on one of the shelves and then walked out into the center of the training mats. "You will get it back when I've seen that you've earned it. Now...Fight!" With that, he attacked. She wasn't expecting this. She reacted on pure instinct as he managed to get a leg behind her knees, and she flipped backwards before he could do anything.

At first she thought that it was merely a test, but he continued, not holding anything back.

He immediately swung a right hook as she tried to recover her balance from the flip, and she just barely blocked it with her hastily raised left forearm.

Rhea then reacted with a right hook of her own, but soon found her arm wrenched up behind her back...which made her angry.

She felt an anger begin to rise in her gut, and she reacted to it. She kicked back with her right leg, straight into his knee, and he immediately let go of her arm, collapsing in pain.

A quick turn later had her suddenly on her back once more as he had immediately gone for a tackle around the waist while her back had still been turned, pinning her to the ground, using his superior body weight. A move from a movie flashed into her head, so she tried it. Using her lower body, she managed to flip him over, and then slid down to pin his arms, but she was too slow.

He quickly flipped her _back_ over and then pinned her arms down and dropped his head to her neck. His breath brushed against her pulse, hot and dangerous.

"You're dead..."

With those words, he stood up and walked over to where he'd left the water.

He opened up the bottle and took a long drink from it. Rhea slowly got up, wincing slightly as she felt a muscle pop in her shoulder. She rotated her arm and looked longingly at the water in his hands.

He finished and put the cap back on, wiping a drop of water that had slipped down his chin with his sleeve.

Rhea seethed, irritated that even _with_ her Slayer strength, she had been unable to beat him. She still couldn't figure out why. He was merely a Watcher, he wasn't a Slayer, so how the _hell_ had he been able to beat her in that fight? She'd been putting everything into it, but it had been practically nothing against him.

Giles saw her confusion...and her anger.

He tossed the bottle over to her. "Drink up...I'll explain what just happened."

The entire time, Wesley had been watching in utter amazement. He'd seen the man fight with a sword before, but he'd never seen him in a bare-knuckled fight. No wonder he'd been knick-named Ripper. He fought dirty.

As Wesley pulled off his pads, he listened to the conversation between them.

Rhea started. "So...how the hell did you just do that to me? I mean, hello! Slayer strength here! I mean, what are you _on_?"

Giles sat down on the mat and then patted the area next to him, and she soon joined him. He saw that Wesley was out of his padding, and motioned for him to join the two of them, as well. They were soon all sitting together on the mats, two of them with questions that only the third could answer.

He began to explain. "When a Slayer first begins her training, she has very little control over her strength and the application of it."

He looked towards Wesley, and he nodded, confirming what he'd just said. He continued.

"Because of this, it was immediately recognized by the first Watchers that it would be dangerous, even for a Watcher, with full and complete training, to go against her. Which is why they had a, uhm...a special spell fabricated specifically for the active Watcher. When a Watcher is called to his Slayer, it's initiated..."

He looked at the expressions on their faces, but neither of them seemed confused, so he continued.

"And then, during their first training session, it's brought into full active power. It allows the Watcher to, to match his Slayer in a fight...technically, he has the strength that an average vampire would have."

Understanding crossed Wesley's face, but then confusion came once more. "Wait...if that's true, then why was I never...?"

Giles ducked his head. He knew that he would have to explain this part, but that didn't make it any less easy.

"It, uhm, it never happened between you and Buffy simply because...because...because she didn't recognize you as her Watcher, she didn't, didn't..._connect_ with you."

His voice drifted, and Rhea suddenly felt sympathy towards Wesley. It must have been hard to realize that the Slayer that he'd been called to serve had never seen him as her Watcher. She reached out and placed a gentle hand on top of his, which lay only a few inches from her own. He looked up at her in surprise, and she gave him a sympathetic smile.

Giles watched this exchange with some interest.

He just might have found her Watcher...

* * *

**Part 2/?**


	3. How It All Happens

**aftermath (n.) - **the consequence of an event or series of events

* * *

**How It All Happens**

* * *

Giles made his way back up to the tenth floor, wondering how Buffy was doing.

He got off the elevator and made his way down the hallway, his muscles tense and slightly sore, but he had been glad for the training.

At the thought of the training, he thought about Rhea and Wesley, wondering if she would accept him as her Watcher. She needed one, and Giles couldn't be one to her in any shape, way, or form. He was Buffy's Watcher, and he would not change allegiance to her while she slept, unaware of the situation.

As he entered the room, he immediately knew that something was different. Then he saw it.

His Slayer sat up in bed, her eyes wide open, looking seemingly innocent and happy, but he knew that she was secretly plotting the fastest way out of her confines.

"Well," he said with slight hesitation, but filled with good humor. "Look who's late..."

She gave him a mocking smile. "Late now, am I?" Giles nodded. Her smile changed from mocking into genuine. "Well, that's typical for me...what's your excuse?"

He laughed; partially at her humor and partially at the fact that she seemed to be back to her old self.

Giles walked the rest of the way into the room, a grin still tugging at the corner of his lips, unable to keep from smiling. He still remembered what had happened between them only two days ago. Had it only been two days? It felt as though it had been a lifetime. But there she was...alive and well.

However, he wondered...did she still remember?

It was quiet as Dawn, Xander, and Willow silently exited the room, recognizing the fact that Giles wanted to talk to his Slayer.

Neither of them noticed as they were both lost in their own worlds.

Finally, Giles looked up and caught her gaze.

She reached out a hand across the sheet, and she gave him a devious look up through her lashes. Oh yes, she remembered. He smiled and reached his hand towards her own as he sat down next to her on the covers of the bed.

It was all he could do not to take her in his arms right then and there, but he managed to restrain himself. Instead, he settled himself with holding her hand and running his thumb gently across the back of her hand. He hoped that the gesture made itself known. They continued to hold hands for a while, enjoying each others' company.

As she enjoyed his touch, she briefly remembered how he had told her only two days ago that he wanted to wait.

Well...she had waited long enough.

She sat up a bit further, ignoring the slight pinch in her side from where it was wrapped. It probably didn't even need to be wrapped any more, but she decided to humor Giles for a bit and leave it on. She wanted something else at that moment.

The look in her eyes as she tugged at his hand to pull him closer did not go unnoticed by Giles. He gave her a look, and she returned it. He let himself be pulled into her and placed a gentle kiss on her lips, but she would have none of it. She slid her hand into his hair, deepening the kiss, and he groaned slightly as her tongue found his and her left hand positioned itself on his chest. Good lord, the woman was driving him crazy.

He felt himself melt into her, and he knew immediately that this wasn't the best idea. She was recovering and…

Oh good lord, she tasted heavenly.

He quashed the voice inside his head that was telling him to continue, to take what he so surely deserved, and slowly pulled back.

He felt some masculine pride as she mewled slightly at the loss of his lips against hers, but he knew that should he continue he would regret it. She was recovering and he knew that it wasn't just from a wound, but from a curse as well. The after effects of that would be rather severe, that much he was sure of.

"Buffy…we need to talk."

A pout formed on her lips, and he found himself questioning his idea of stopping, but then reminded himself of the seriousness of the situation.

He pushed forward with his words, trying not to succumb to his baser instincts.

"Buffy, this is rather serious, and I don't want to take any chances with it."

As he spoke, they both became aware of the double meaning that laced his words. He wasn't just talking about her injury. They shared a look between them that said more than any words ever could. Yes, he was right. They had to slow down. They were both in a very precarious position.

Buffy shifted on the bed and gently grabbed one of his hands, needing some sort of contact with her Watcher.

"You're right…I know you're right." She then gave him another pouty look. "That doesn't mean that I have to like it."

He nodded his head towards her. "Point taken."

They let themselves enjoy the domestic intimacy of the moment, holding each other's hand. However, the moment had to end, and even though Giles was loathe to be the one to break the moment, he knew that more important things had to be addressed. He slowly pulled his hand away, trying to ignore the slightly hurt look in his Slayer's eye as he did so.

He took a deep breath and began to speak.

"First of all, your injury, though your Slayer abilities have healed it up by now, mostly, they will not be able to help you for what's to come next."

She gave him a searching look that was almost accusatory, but he moved forward.

"The piece of the weapon that had been lodged inside of you had been cursed…and I'm afraid that you'll be suffering some after effects rather soon. This will include some…seizure-type events."

His voice trailed off and he dropped his eyes, unable to meet her searching gaze. He knew that she would not be pleased with what he had to say. He knew that she would want to stay isolated from everyone until it was over.

She reached out for his hand once more and gave it a soft squeeze, bringing his gaze back up to her face.

"Could you…could you keep Dawn busy? I don't want her to, well, you know."

Her voice drifted slightly, but he understood what she meant. She didn't want Dawn to see her in that way. After what Dawn had to go through with her mom…he could understand it.

He nodded, returning her squeeze with one of his own. She gave him a smile, and then she gestured with her head towards the door, a silly grin appearing on her face. Of course. She wanted to see everyone again.

He gave her a look, but ignored her glare as he stood and went over and opened the door.

"Hey, Buffster! How you holdin' up?"

Xander, of course.

Willow's voice rang out immediately after his. "I found chocolate for you! It's the number one necessity for recovery or sickness of any kind."

Willow's radiant smile was infectious, and suddenly Giles realized why Buffy had wanted to see them. Who wouldn't want to see friends like these when you weren't feeling well? He was proud to see Dawn staying mostly silent, but smiling and adding a witty comment every now and again, while the other two continued to fill the silence.

Giles watched from the corner of the room, simply soaking in the happy atmosphere that was being created.

Suddenly, Dawn spoke up.

"So, how much longer 'til you're better?"

At this, both Xander and Willow gave her a look, obviously curious about the answer.

Buffy gave a brief glance over to where Giles stood in the corner, and then plastered on a smile that he could recognize as forced, but only because he'd spent so many years on the receiving end of that smile before and after battles. Usually when it came to the end of the world.

"Well, Watcher guy over here says it'll be a while until I'm up and about, and I think he's right. Probably…another week?"

She glanced over at him and he gave her a small nod, reassuring her that, yes, her estimate was accurate.

Willow looked at her friend in surprise at her response.

"Really? That long? Seems like a pretty long time for you, Buff. What about your Slayer abilities?"

Buffy quickly flipped through her mind, and began talking as the idea popped into her head.

"Well, Giles said that the weapons that they used most likely had some things on them that slow down a Slayer's healing ability, you know, to keep us out of the fight longer. So, looks like I'll be recovering like a normal person would from a war wound like mine."

At that, all three of them seemed reassured, and Giles could see her visibly relax. He was silently proud of how quickly she'd covered her tracks.

With that, they realized that she was probably tired and left the room, leaving the two of them once more very much alone.

He walked over to her bed and grasped her hand, a gesture that was now becoming their personal way of reassuring the other person.

"Nicely done, my Slayer."

She looked up at him, and gently squeezed his hand.

"I learned from the best. Thinking on your feet with words has always been _your_ forte, not mine. I'm better at improvising in the physical sense."

She grinned, and he couldn't stop a low laugh from escaping him. This woman constantly amazed him, and he honestly didn't know what he would do without her. She was a stunning woman, and was about to face some grueling trials over the next several days.

He pulled back slightly. "Well, I should let you get your rest."

She grasped his hand even tighter, and he looked at her in confusion.

"Please…stay with me?"

A soft smile appeared on his lips at her request.

"Of course."

With that, he watched in slight surprise as she scooted over, making room for him on the bed. He slid on top of the covers, giving her space, but she wrapped her arms around his waist, tucking herself into his side, resting her head on his chest.

"There. Perfect," was all she said before he heard her breath slowly even out as she fell asleep.

He marveled for a moment at the position that he was in, but then just smiled to himself. Yes, she was right about that. It truly was perfect.

* * *

**Part 3/?**


	4. It's Gonna Be A Long One

**aftermath****(n.)****-**the consequence of an event or series of events

* * *

**It's Gonna Be A Long One **

* * *

Giles pulled himself through the layers of sleep to find a blonde head on the pillow next to him.

He watched Buffy as she slept, hoping that her dreams were restful, taking in every part of her that he could see. She truly was an amazing slayer, but she was an even more amazing woman. He traced a finger along her shoulder, and silently prayed that the next few days would pass quickly.

He slid out of the bed, noticing that his clothes were hopelessly wrinkled and that he needed to change.

Glancing over at his sleeping Slayer, he realized that he could change without having to worry.

He turned away from the bed and quickly pulled his shirt and sweater over his head, tossing them to the corner of the room, not wanting to bother with them any more than he had to. His hands went to his belt and deftly undid the buckle, the leather making a slight hiss as he pulled it through the loops.

Buffy, unseen by her Watcher, slowly awoke as she noticed the lack of warmth beside her and was greeted by a wonderful sight.

There, laid bare before her eyes, was the naked back of her Watcher. Now _that_ was a sight that she would gladly wake up to every morning.

Realizing that he didn't know that she was awake, she stayed silent and waited in breathless anticipation as his hands went to his pants after placing his belt on the other bed.

She had always wondered whether her Watcher was a boxers or briefs kind of man, and her breath was stolen out of her as he pushed his pants down and her question was finally answered. She had to bite her lip to keep from making a sound at the sight in front of her.

And the answer was…neither.

There was her Watcher's bare bottom for her to see, and she had to admit that it was quite a sight.

Buffy watched as he grabbed a pair of jeans from his bag on the end of the other bed and pulled them up over his hips, and the sound of a zipper greeted her ears.

She had to hold in a mewl of protest. From what she had seen of him and his body, she secretly thought that it should be made illegal for her Watcher to wear any type of clothing whatsoever. He was _all _man, and she'd never seen anything quite like it.

It was more of a raw and natural strength, unlike the marble-chiseled perfection of Angel or the striking lean strength of Spike.

She grinned to herself as she watched him grab a shirt and throw it on over his shoulders.

Damn…had his shoulders always been that broad?

She found that it was strange that she'd never noticed him in such a unique way before. He was so, so…so fit. So smart, so kind, a little dangerous, and he already had his whole life dedicated to her. What else could she ever wish for?

Buffy saw him start to turn, so she quickly closed her eyes and evened her breathing so that he wouldn't know that she had seen the whole thing, silently planning to wake up in as normal a way as possible.

Giles looked at his Slayer where she lay sleeping and a small smile escaped his lips at the sight.

Her hair was rumpled, as were her clothes, and she was curled up into almost a fetal position. He watched as she shifted in her sleep, her arm reaching out to where he had lain only moments before.

A yawn escaped her and he watched as her eyes fluttered open.

"Giles?"

He moved back over to the bed, leaning across the covers and surprising her with a soft kiss against her lips. He just couldn't seem to resist; she was simply too adorable when she was all muzzy and confused as she woke up, and her lips seemed to be begging him to be kissed.

She kissed him back, but it took her a moment to return the kiss, as she was startled at the feel of his lips on her own. Who knew that her Watcher could be so bold?

He slowly pulled away and a slow and sensual grin crossed his lips.

"Good morning, Buffy."

With that, he stood up and walked out of the room, leaving her floundering in confusion at everything that had just happened. If that was how Rupert Giles said good morning, she would gladly wake up to that man every day for the rest of her life.

And then her thought hit her with all the subtlety of a freight train…_the __rest __of __her __life_.

Was that what she wanted with him? The rest of her life? She sat up in bed and stared at the door that he had walked through and tried to come to grips with that particular thought.

Being with him for the rest of her life made sense, considering that she had already spent the last seven or eight years with him. But at the same time, the thought scared her out her mind. Her life wasn't expected to be all that long…it wouldn't be fair to him.

But would it be fair to him if she didn't even give the two of them a chance?

Shaking the feeling off, she pulled herself to the edge of the bed, throwing her legs over the side.

Internally, she still debated on whether or not she should get up. She was still recovering and probably shouldn't be moving around…and Giles would probably have a fit if he knew that she was getting out of bed, and an upset Giles was _not_ something that she wanted to deal with.

A slight pout on her face, she slid her legs back under the covers, letting herself sink comfortably into the mattress.

She had just started to drift into an almost sleep, when the door opened and in walked her Watcher, a tray of food balanced on one hand.

It was an adorable sight, and she tried to hold back her giggle at the image that popped into her head of him wearing a frilly white apron with a duster in one hand.

Luckily, he did not notice her amusement, as he was distracted by balancing the tray on his one hand and seemed to be carrying something else in his other hand. He finally made it over to the bed, placing the tray directly next to her, and placed what she could now see to be a medicinal bag of some sorts on the other bed.

He motioned towards the food as he opened up his other bag.

"Go ahead and eat up, Buffy. You need to keep up your strength for the next few days. Your body will be fighting the curse and it will be using all of your metabolic energy in order to do so, so you need to take in as many calories as you possibly can. A Slayer's metabolic rate is much higher than a normal person's and will burn through calories about ten times faster than even a normal incredibly athletic person's high metabolic rate."

As he spoke, he began pulling out bottles of pills, and Buffy tried to read the labels as she began to eat the sausages that he'd put on her place, but couldn't read the small handwritten script.

As she continued to eat, she watched as her Watcher carefully drew out a syringe and a small bottle of clear liquid that had more of the same small writing on the side.

With what seemed to be practiced ease, he pulled off the cap of the bottle and drew the liquid into the needle, tapping the side of it to remove air bubbles as professionals always did.

He then turned towards her and watched for a few moments as she finished off the sausages and started in on the pancakes that were also on the plate. She still had several more things to get through, which included three waffles douse in butter and syrup, bacon, an omelet that looked like it had peppers, ham, and cheese in it, and two large bran muffins, topped off by a large bowl of freshly chopped up and sliced fruit.

Giles sat on the edge of the other bed and merely watched as his Slayer went through the food in front of her.

But by the time Buffy had finished the waffles, bacon, and omelet, she was discovering that she felt more than full. She put down her fork and looked at her Watcher.

"Giles," she groaned, placing a hand on her stomach. "Seriously? I think I've eaten enough to put Xander to shame, here, and I honestly don't think I can eat anymore right now."

Giles gave her a small smile and chuckled at her accurate statement. Yes, she had indeed out-eaten Xander. He had watched the young man downstairs as he had filled up Buffy's plate, and the boy had only gone through five pancakes and ten sausages.

He walked over to her bed and sat across from her, sliding the tray out of the way.

"Alright, then. Now we prepare you the rest of the way."

He gently pulled her arm towards him and rolled up her sleeve, giving her a slightly apologetic look for what he was about to do.

He sighed deeply and then quickly explained.

"Buffy…what is going to happen is going to be a severe attack on your body and your body will do everything it can to fight it off, but it won't be enough. This curse works to use the adrenaline that your body will produce in trying to fight off the curse, to exacerbate it. The adrenaline will literally be fuel to the fire."

He paused, obviously distressed at what he was about to tell her and what he was about to do.

He slid his hand into hers and gently squeezed. "I am going to give you a compound that will suppress your body's natural, instinctive response to produce adrenaline in order to keep the curse from, from…from hurting you."

It was obvious that he didn't want to admit that the curse could kill her, and she inwardly smiled at her Watcher's compassion.

But then what he said fully registered in her mind and she looked at him, her face showing the expression of sudden realization.

"Wait a second…is that…?"

Giles swallowed compulsively, nodding his head in the smallest of movements. "Yes, Buffy. This is what was used for the test on your…your seventeenth birthday." He paused, but then continued. "Please understand that I'm doing this to, to…to save you."

She merely squeezed his hand and gave him a reassuring smile. "I know, Giles…I know."

With that, she lifted her other hand and pulled back the long sleeve on her shirt, willingly offering her arm to him.

He gave her a strained, but appreciative smile, and quickly went through the motions, tying a tourniquet around her upper arm and then inserted the needle, emptying the clear liquid into her body.

What once had been used in a most brutal and barbarous fashion, meant to cripple her, would now be her saving grace.

After he took the tourniquet off and pulled needle out, he watched in some amazement as the small hole in her arm healed almost immediately, and was well aware of the fact that that was probably the last time for the next couple of weeks that he would see her heal in such a way.

Soon enough, the drug would take effect and she would be as normal a person as anyone else…at least, in the physical sense. To him, she would always be extraordinary, no matter what.

He moved from her bed back over to the other one, tossing the needle to the trash, and opened up several of the bottles, placing several different colored pills in his hand.

He then moved back to her bed and placed the pills on her tray, which he moved back in front of her. He pushed the orange juice towards her and gave her a regretful smile.

Buffy, in turn, gave him a wry and pointed look as she reached for the pills with one hand and the orange juice with the other. She paused for a moment and pursed her lips into an utterly adorable pout, obviously put out at what he was making her do.

"I just _know_ this is payback for me almost never getting sick in the past eight years, isn't it?"

A small chuckle escaped him at her humorous take on the situation, and he watched as she dutifully placed the pills in her mouth and swallowed them down with the orange juice.

She then made herself more comfortable on the bed, adjusting her pillows against the headboard, and gave him a serious look.

"So," she said reaching for his hand and running her thumb over the backs of his fingers. "What are the pills for?"

He looked down at their joined hands, not entirely sure if he could keep her gaze while telling her what they were for. All of them were specially made for Slayers and were a closely guarded secret of the Council…of course, the Council didn't exist anymore, so it couldn't hurt to tell her.

"Well, they're specially made for curse based illnesses, specifically those that affect Slayers. Because Slayers have such a different biological makeup than your normal, average person, they require different doses of certain…certain essentials. More, more concentrated doses at much higher levels."

He lifted his gaze back to her, and she simply gave him a reassuring smile.

"Well, duh…I could've told you that, Mr. Book Guy," she said, with a slightly humor filled tone.

He gave her a sheepish smile and continued to hold her hand.

With any luck, everything would be over in two or three days, but knowing Buffy, luck probably wasn't on her side at the moment, so he expected to be there for at least a week. It was going to be an incredibly long seven days.

* * *

**Part 4/?**


End file.
